Emily and Linda’s Travel Blog

We got off the bus at Toronto's Chinatown in search of Vietnamese food. We found a little place called Bun Saigon which didn't look all that special on the outside, but had a pretty good crowd even at 2:30 and we were the only non-Asians so two good signs. When the first plate of greens and herbs and the dipping sauce showed up, I was already happy. We had banh xeo, a favorite of mine that is like a crispy omelette with shrimp and bean sprouts that you wrap up in lettuce leaves with mint and Asian basil. 

Next we had shrimp croquettes grilled on sugar cane, but with a twist. It came with a sort of summer-roll making kit where there are rice paper rounds and a semicircular container of hot water. You spin the rice paper in the water to soften it, add a piece of shrimp croquette, cucumber, rice noodles, mint and basil and then roll it like a burrito. Dip it in the dipping sauce, taste, and sigh. 

 Finished off with a plate of very fresh sauteed vegetables. Delish!  We may have to go back again, but then the dilemma is repeat the same menu or venture further into the offerings?

To save my feet and get a sense of the City, we got on the double decker tour bus this morning. Actually we had a partcularly good tour guide. My favorite story she told was about how there was a former governor who preferred English to Native American names and so changed the name of the town to York. However it was always being compared unfavorably to New York, being referred to as Little York or Little Smelly York  so the peolpe of the town wanted it changed back. However the governor said "Over my dead body". "So we killed him, but in the typically Canadian passive-aggressive way - we waited for him to die and then changed it". 

LOTS of building here. Feels like downtown Brooklyn in that way. Scaffolds and excavation everywhere. And so many condominium high-rises!  As in Brooklyn, it's hard to imagine where all the people to fill the will come from.  

OK, we'll stop carping about our rough time at LaGuardia

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/15/nyregion/reports-of-gunfire-at-kennedy-airport-prompt-evacuation.html?_r=0

We made our slow way to Toronto today. Got up early only to wait till mid-day for our delayed flight. Not too horrible, but really, LaGuardia is such an unpleasant, ill equipped airport. We'd forgotten. Next time, we take the longer trip to JFK happily. 

Further weird snags getting into the flat (reminiscent of our benighted arrival in London - Chris and Marg will know what that means).  In all the years of renting places abroad, this was the first that really left a bad taste in our mouths. Instead of a 2 bedroom place in a building with a pool, we were ushered into a 1 bedroom with no pool and no explanation.  We're making it work, 

Anyway, we still managed to find a lovely restaurant for a much needed fortified beverage and delicious food. Linda had a Southern fried chicken sandwich with jicama slaw and one of the prettiest side salads I've ever seen. I had Coconut shrimp with a spicy sweet broth, fried taro chips, and a Thai slaw. Now back at the flat, which does at least have a balcony as promised and a view of the Toronto Tower.

Hopefully we'll start the new day fresh and wash that landlord right out of out hair. 

We loved the Mediterranean Exploration Company so much that we went back for our final dinner here and had 4 different tapas plates. Again all excellent. Here's a quiz for my medical friends: we started with red wine and a plate that included fava beans and aged cheese. Very delicious, but what medication could be a potentially fatal combination with that meal?

My conference ended with lunch today so Linda and I visited the Portland Art Museum. She wanted to see an exhibit of William Eggleston's photos.  My favorite part was the Native American fashion designers exhibit::

Today we had a wrap-up including a few very thoughtful case studies and a fabulous session on ways to avoid wasting food.  My favorite- keep the ends and peels as well as the wilted,but not not spoiled vegetables in a "stock bag" in the freezer. Then when there's enough and you have time, throw it all in a pot or slow cooker and make great vegetable broth which can also be frozen for later use. The head chef also showed us a fabulous recipe for using the tops of carrots to make pesto with mint and pistachio nuts. Tasting was part of the demo. Definitely going to try it out.

There was also a great session on taking "food as medicine thinking" into the community.  One thing I respect about the faculty is that many of them employ what my mother used to call the Robin Hood strategy - they work part of their time among fairly affluent people and then can give some part of their week to service in struggling neighborhoods.  Some are working in clinics that serve the uninsured  a few have been spending time teaching mind-body trauma recovery techniques to Syrian refugees, and another group is working with a large urban hospital to revamp their food service so patients actually get food that's good for them.  

 After one last session where we learned about laughter therapy by doing some, we had one last fabulous lunch together and the said our goodbyes. Menu for today's lunch: gaspacho with avocado crema, spinach and herb frittata, roasted edamame with herbs, quinoa with grapes, and gluten free chocolate date cherry truffles.

Today we had lectures on Phytonutrients, Prenatal Nutrition, and Laboratory Assessment. Also two cooking demonstrations. We learned to make 2 kinds of sauerkraut- one from beets and another from a Salvadoran recipe to go with papusas.  Lots of fun. They also served another spectacular lunch (we get all the recipes in the syllabus package so I'll be dishing some new dishes when we get back). 

For dinner, Linda and I went to a restaurant she found in her ramblings today - an entirely gluten-free Mexican restaurant called Verde Cocina! House made corn tortillas and they even had gluten-free beer - a real treat since haven't had a beer in over a year and it's 85 degrees out here. Good foraging on Linda's part and totally in keeping with the theme of the conference.

One of the topics much discussed today was the Mediterranean diet so Linda and I were inspired to have dinner at Meditteranean Exploration Company.  Lovely space with a really interesting menu with dishes from Greece, Israel,Turkey, Lebanon, And Morocco among others. We had a number of small plates, all delicious and concluded that we might have to come back and sample more of them. Our favorites: lamb ragu with humus and tahini and a beautifully cooked Persian chicken kabob with mint and saffron yoghurt. 

Oh, and I managed to handle the unisex bathroom just fine. 

Conference off to a good start. Topics included Origins of Human Diet & Brain Physiology, Mind Body Nutrition, and Sleep and Brain Health.  Consistently good speakers with strong expertise and evidence to back opinions (so refreshing). I also appreciated their general agreement that eating should be fun and diet plans shouldn't be punitive. 

My favorite quote of the day: "Franks and Beer eaten with joy and cheer Are better than beans and bread eaten with fear and dread"- John Bagnulo 

Best cartoon of the day: